As Russia Prepares For Mega Events, Putin To Introduce Law Against Match-Fixing

Russian President Vladimir Putin will introduce a bill into Russia's parliament that would "foresee jail terms up to seven years for match-fixing" ahead of the country hosting the Olympics and the World Cup, according to the AFP. The bill is a sign of "how seriously the Russian authorities take corruption in sport" as the world's attention turns to Russia's domestic football and other sports ahead of the 2014 Winter Games and 2018 World Cup. The law will "formally establish a criminal offence for seeking to influence the result of a game by bribing participants or receiving a bribe to do so." The maximum punishment for fixing the result of the match would be four to seven years with fines ranging from 300,000 rubles ($9,500) to 1M rubles ($32,000)" (AFP, 11/2).